*Media Advisory*

V.I.P.O. Co-founders to Host Surviving the Unthinkable Event

WOBURN — Detective Mario Oliveira and Officer Bob Denapoli, co-founders of the Violently Injured Police Officers Organization (V.I.P.O.), will share their experiences about serious line of duty injuries at a Boston event next month.

WHEN:

Tuesday, Jan 29, 2019, from 8 a.m. to 1 p.m.

WHERE:

Seaport World Trade Center Amphitheater

WHAT:

Detective Oliveira (Somerville Police Department, retired) and Officer Denapoli (Woburn Police Department, retired), both of whom were severely injured in the line of duty, will talk about their experiences and struggles following their injuries. They will also discuss the policies and procedures they feel need to be in place to protect members of law enforcement who are injured and unable to continue working.

The event is free and open to law enforcement only. Register by completing this form and faxing it to the number listed on the form.

The event is sponsored by V.I.P.O., the Massachusetts Major City Chiefs of Police Association, the Middlesex County Chiefs of Police Association, the Massachusetts State Police and the New England State Police Information Network.

Members of the media may RSVP for the event or arrange interviews by contacting John Guilfoil by emailing [email protected] or calling 617-993-0003.

About V.I.P.O.:
The Violently Injured Police Officers (V.I.P.O.) Organization, founded by Massachusetts police officers, is a support group for law enforcement officers who have sustained serious, permanent injuries during a violent encounter in the line of duty.

On behalf of the entire membership of the Massachusetts Major City Police Chief’s Association (MMCC) – comprised of the 39 largest police departments in the state – we would like to take this opportunity to respectfully apprise you that our organization has made the decision to endorse you in your candidacy for reelection as Attorney General for this great Commonwealth. Our membership had a vote this past Tuesday at our monthly MMCC Meeting at the BYN Mellon in Everett and we are pleased to inform you that the vote passed unanimously by all of our members that were present and voting.

All the men and women of our organization collectively agree that your office, behind your formidable leadership, has been doing an outstanding job over the past 4 years, specifically as it pertains to enhancing public safety in our cities and towns and taking an exceptional leadership role in addressing the opioid epidemic as well as working to reducing violence.

We believe that we have the ability to recognize the leadership qualities that are necessary to effectively address the critical issues that face the citizens of Commonwealth in the years that lay ahead. You absolutely possess those qualities and understand the need to build positive relationships with the entire law enforcement community and recognize how that translates into effective public safety policy.

We are looking forward to continue our valued partnership and working together with you and your office over the next four years to do everything that we possibly can to enhance public safety for all of our residents in this great Commonwealth behind your leadership, guidance and support.

CHELSEA, Mass. — Each envelope and box inside the Chelsea Police Department’s evidence room tells a story and contains the keys to justice in criminal cases.

Thousands of boxes neatly stacked from floor to ceiling contain evidence that could put dangerous criminals behind bars and set the wrongly accused free.

“It’s everything. The integrity of evidence goes towards the integrity of the police department. So I think there has to be that constant check and balance,” Chelsea police Chief Brian Kyes told 5 Investigates’ Kathy Curran.

On Urban Update this Sunday: The very important and hot button issue of law enforcement in America.

With police officers now becoming very real targets for violence, the relationship between local police and the communities they serve has become paramount.

On the show this week, four very high ranking officers of the law with an unedited and unfiltered platform to express their unique perspectives on this unprecedented time in our nation’s history.

Participating with host Alberto Vasallo, III are: Boston Police Department Superintendent-in-Chief William Gross, who reports directly to the Boston Police Commissioner and is the highest-ranking police officer in the Department; Chelsea Chief of Police Brian Kyes, who is also the current President of the Massachusetts Major City Chiefs Association; Everett Chief of Police Steven A. Mazzie, who has one hundred sworn police officers and twelve civilian support staffs under him and MBTA Transit Police Chief Kenneth Green, a man entrusted with protecting the very diverse riding public on the oldest transit system in the country – that cuts through virtually every neighborhood of the city and beyond…

Vision

MMCC is committed to innovative strategies to Reduce and Prevent Crime. Create a Total Paradigm Shift in Police Training. Make a long-term commitment to Racial Justice in Criminal Justice and Public Safely Practices, and to develop a model leadership institute.